Lakshminath Bezbaruah
A commemorative postage stamp on the Birth Centenary of Laxminath Bezbaroa, pioneer of modern Assamese literature from Jonaki era :
Issued by India
Issued on Oct 5, 1968
Issued for : Lakshminath Bezbaruah was not only a literary figure of outstanding eminence but a distinguished leader of modern Assam. This is the centenary year of his birth and the Posts & Telegraphs Department is proud to associate itself with the celebrations by issuing a special postage stamp to honour this great son of Assam and of India.
Description of Design : The design of the stamp is horizontal and depicts a portrait of Lakshminath Bezbaruah at the right half side of the stamp. A line sketch of an open book and a quill is shown in between the word ‘Bharat‘ and ‘INDIA‘ in Hindi and English respectively at the left border of the stamp.
Type : Stamp, Mint Condition
Colour : Suede Grey
Denomination : 20 Paise
Overall Size : 3.34 X 2.88 cms.
Printing Size : 2.98 X 2.52 cms.
Perforation : 14 x 13½
Watermark : Printed on unwatermarked paper
Number Printed : 20,00,000
Number per issue Sheet : 42
Printing Process : Photogravure
Designed and Printed at : India Security Press
Name : Lakshminath Bezbaroa
Born on Nov 1868 at Palara Bighati, Assam, India
Died on Mar 26, 1938 at Dibrugarh, Assam, India
About :
- Lakshminath Bezbaruah who pioneered the modern Assamese literature occupies a very high position in the field of Indian letters. He has been deservedly honoured by the Sahitya Akademi as one of the makers of modern Indian Literature. Born in 1868 in a well-known family of Assam, he had his early education at Sibsagar and his higher education at Calcutta. He married a niece of the Poet Tagore, an unusual inter-provincial alliance at that time. Although he had to be often away from Assam for long periods, he kept himself in close touch with events at home. A many-sided personality – journalist, lecturer, poet and more especially writer – Lakshminath Bezbaruah set a high literary standard through the monthly periodical “Banhi” which he edited and published. A versatile writer, his works include plays, stories, poems, humorous sketches and works of literary criticism. It was perhaps in his plays that he found his best literary expression. His poem “O’mor Apponar Desh” is among the best known songs of Assam. Into Assam‘s literary tradition he breathed new life, and he created new horizons.
- Honours sought him out in his later life. In 1921, he presided over the All-Assam Students’ Conference at Gauhati. Two years later he was honoured as “Rasaraj” for his humorous writings. He presided over the Gauhati session of the Assam Sahitya Sabha in 1924. His role in the Vaishnavite religious revival in Assam was recognised when in 1933 he was invited to deliver a series of lectures on the subject at Baroda. He passed away in his seventieth year, only a few months after he went back to live in Assam permanently.
